Termination of Parental Rights: A Commentary on Ben-David

Ben-David (this issue) introduced us to the complexity of the factors that courts consider in termination of parental rights (TPR). It is an opening to understanding which factors are taken into consideration and how courts make these challenging determinations. Yet there are other questions that must be asked before we truly understand the TPR decisions made by courts across a variety of legal jurisdictions. This commentary argues that we must take the inquiry deeper, asking questions that will unpack the complexity assisting researchers and clinicians. Thus, we will want to know how courts weigh such important issues as the credibility of the evidence. What is it about such factors as parental competence, failure of remediation, and other issues identified by Ben-David that cause courts to determine TPR is the best choice? Consideration is given to how Ben-David’s work might be extended using a Canadian perspective.     

Study of Termination of Parental Rights: An Analysis of Israeli Court Decisions in Favor or Against Termination of Parental Rights

A court decision to terminate parental rights and declare a child eligible for adoption (TPR) has far-reaching consequences. However, little is known about the legal decision-making process involved. This study aims to fill this gap and identify the main considerations taken into account by the courts in TPR cases. After analyzing the contents of 261 court decisions, the study found differences between decisions in favor or against TPR based on the characteristics of the child–parent relationship, the parents and the child. Predictors of TPR decisions were also identified. The study discusses the findings and their implications for social work and legal practices and suggests directions for future research.     

The Impact of Parental Incapacity as an Adoption Cause on the Termination of Parental Rights: An Analysis of Court Decisions

Based on an analysis of 261 court decisions, the study demonstrates how the addition of a “parental incapacity” clause as grounds for termination of parental rights (TPR) in Israeli law affected the decision-making process. Specifically, the study examines how the legal reasoning, the rate of TPR rulings, and the type of cases presented to the courts changed following the introduction of the new clause. Less emphasis on parents’ rights was found as opposed to greater emphasis on parental social normativity and a higher rate of TPR rulings based on “parental incapacity.” These findings and their implications are discussed.     

Cultural Competency and Achieving Styles in Clinical Social Work

Abstract

This paper attempts to build a cultural competency framework by reviewing the literature and laying a conceptual foundation for professional standards in clinical social work. It also explores the implications of cultural competency by relating some important factors to clinical decisions, alliance, and outcome in the mental health field. The pathways and directions of the relationships as well as the potential factors affecting cross-cultural clinical alliance are illuminated in a general model to guide hypothesis formulation in further research. Empirical data are presented on clinical social work practice with Asian American clients in light of a key factor in shaping cultural competency, i.e., clinicians' personal achieving styles. The findings suggest that such styles are culturally bound.     

Sharing Sensitive Student Information With Field Instructors

Student trust, ethical and legal responsibilities of faculty, and client risk are all at stake in decisions made about sharing sensitive student information with field instructors. This article describes a survey of practicum students, field liaisons, and field instructors at ten universities on what types of information they believed should be shared, what factors should be considered in sharing it, what school practices are followed, and what school policies should guide sharing this kind of information. Field instructors tended to want most types of information shared with them and students tended not to. A discussion explores how to assist schools in developing relevant policies in this area.     

Does Where I Live Affect Whether I Apply? The Contextual Determinants of Applying for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals

The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program provides temporary relief from deportation and legal work authorization for eligible undocumented youth in the United States. This study investigates the factors that help or hinder undocumented youth in applying for DACA. We focus on contexts of reception to understand the determinants of DACA applications, as studies of previous legalization programs indicate that the communities in which immigrants live help shape application decisions. Our analysis shows that more immigrant‐serving organizations in a state translate into more applications, that DACA implementation rates are not statistically significantly lower in states with hostile policy climates, and that socioeconomic factors are most significantly related to DACA applications. In identifying the collective factors that influence applying to DACA, we demonstrate that the structural opportunities and barriers present in receiving locales shape undocumented youths’ decisions to regularize their immigration status, which has significant implications for their resulting incorporation trajectories.     

Theoretical Interpretations of Social Class and Racial Differentials in Legal Decision-Making for Juveniles*

This paper examines three theoretical interpretations of the frequently observed relationship between social class, race and legal decision-making for juveniles. The literature provides only weak evidence of a social class differential, particularly at arrest and judicial decisions, but provides clear and consistent evidence of a racial differential operating at each decision level. Moreover, the differentials operate continuously over various decision levels to produce a substantial accumulative racial differential transforming a more or less heterogeneous racial arrest population into a homogeneous institutional black population. The importance of regarding legal decision-making for juveniles as a process is suggested. For the most part no one theoretical interpretation of this differential is supported by the literature. Controlling for the explanatory conditions suggested by either the legal, interactionist, or conflict perspective leaves a substantial portion of the observed differential unexplained.     

Decision making in child welfare: A critical review of the literature

The decision to intervene with families has enormous implications for a democratic society. Child protective services must both protect children and families. Practice theory, social policies, and agency procedures have not provided a consensus on the criteria to guide decision making in child welfare. This paper reviews the empirical studies in the decision making literature for the purposes of: identifying variables workers are using to guide their decisions; identifying major professional concerns and issues with this literature; and suggest questions for further research.     

Limitations of evidence in the practice of evidence-based medicine

The goal of evidence-based medicine (EBM) is to support population-based policies and individual medical decisions that serve to improve health outcomes through the use of the most proven effective treatments. The essence of EBM is to use evidence (typically research data) related to the effectiveness of medical interventions to guide decisions about whether to use those interventions in clinical practice. The quality of evidence is the critical component in understanding and using EBM. This article discusses the kinds and limitations of the evidence used in the practice of EBM.     

Juvenile court pathways to legal permanence for children in substitute care

Using administrative data describing the contemporaneous substitute care and juvenile court histories of 8116 children entering substitute care in Cook county Illinois, this study examines children's pathways to legal permanence. Specifically, by parsing children's exit to permanence by its constituent legal milestones, and examining the extent to which variability in the rates of these milestones are attributable to the court calendar (i.e., judge) and child levels, respectively, this study attempts to pinpoint the primary sources of variability in children's pathways to legal permanence. Results suggest that the transitions between certain legal milestones (e.g., disposition to reunification, disposition to TPR) account for a majority of the variability in children's exit to permanence. Results also suggest that a moderate amount of variability in permanency rates is attributable to court calendars, but that the magnitude of calendar-level influence varies considerably across legal milestone transitions; for some transitions (e.g., TPR to adoption finalization), calendar-level influence is effectively zero, whereas for other transitions (e.g., entry to dispositional order), calendar-level influence seems to eclipse the influence of observed child-level characteristics. Implications for child welfare and juvenile court scholarship, policy, and practice are discussed.     

Addressing the Issue of Psychiatric Disability in Social Work Interns: The Need for a Problem-Solving Framework

Abstract

This article examines the issues that arise when field instructors encounter social work interns with psychiatric problems. The authors discuss how legal decisions and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) provide the organizing framework for developing appropriate policies for addressing these situations. Findings from a survey that asked 61 field instructors about their experiences with such students and their knowledge of ADA guidelines provide additional information for policy development. Based on the survey and the legal guidelines, the authors present a problem-solving framework and recommendations to guide academic programs toward an approach that protects the rights of all parties involved.     

The life of the Tea Party: Differences between Tea Party and Republican media use and political variables

The Tea Party has been identified by most mass media sources as a separate but related element of the Republican Party. This study adds to a new body of literature on the Tea Party by using polarization literature and survey data to (a) separate Tea Party Republicans (TPR), Tea Party Non-Republicans (TPNR), and Non–Tea Party Republicans; (b) identify the role of Tea Party affiliation (or lack thereof) on political interest and media use; and (c) assess the role of media use by these three groups on political interest and voting. This study found that partisan media plays an important role for all three groups and it especially has the strongest role for those who do not align themselves with the Republican Party. Specifically, both TPR and TPNR were more likely to be politically interested and rely on partisan media than Republicans who are not affiliated with the Tea Party.     

Facilitating Transition Among Transgender Clients: Components of Effective Clinical Practice

Although transgender clients seek services in a number of settings in which social workers practice, there is a dearth of scholarly literature available to guide effective clinical practice with this population. When transgender issues are included in the practice literature, the trend has been to consolidate the needs of transgender clients with those of the larger lesbian, gay, and bisexual community or to simply focus on increasing the comfort level of clinicians working with this population. This is concerning because transgender individuals represent a vulnerable subgroup of clients with unique and specific treatment needs related to the transition experience. Social workers play a critical role; they may serve transgender clients and their families in many ways: as advocate, educator, diagnostician, and individual, couples or family therapist. The purpose of this article is to identify several key components of trans-specific clinical practice and the role of social workers in supporting and facilitating client transition. Specifically, the authors will discuss: (a) relevant definitions and terminology, (b) emerging issues related to depathologizing the needs and experiences of transgender individuals, (c) the critical elements of trans-specific clinical assessment, and (d) clinical advocacy associated with the medical legal and social aspects of the transition process. Specific recommendations for trans-affirmative social work practice will be offered.     

Three Recent United States Supreme Court Decisions for Professionals Who Testify in Child Sexual Abuse Cases

This article provides a basic review of the most recent United States Supreme Court decisions that directly relate to child sexual abuse. These cases are Maryland v. Craig, Idaho v. Wright, and White v. Illinois. More specifically, the article illustrates how the legal principles of these cases practically affect professionals who treat and counsel sexual abuse victims when and if they are called to testify in court proceedings. After a brief introduction, a background section succinctly explains the basic legal principles of confrontation and hearsay which underpin the recent Supreme Court decisions. The rest of the article then analyzes each of the three recent cases and focuses on citing examples of testimony that was or was not admissible. This article is not intended to be an exhaustive legal analysis nor a commentary on the appropriateness of the case holdings, but rather a practical review with specific examples of what the United States Supreme Court has held to be acceptable as of this writing.     

Legal Disposition of Inter-Group and Intra-Group Homicides

A study of the legal treatment of inter-group and intra-group homicides reveals that dispositional decisions are made on the basis of the sex and occupational prestige combinations of offender-victim pairs. Discriminant analysis of data concerning 444 defendants and 432 victims indicates that males accused of slaying females receive the most severe dispositions, while females held in the death of males are noticeably underpenalized. Final convictions are most severe for low status defendants alleged to have murdered high status victims. Contrary to earlier studies, there are no significant differences in legal treatment in terms of the racial combinations of the offender-victim pair. An interpretive approach to the legal process may explain these results: differential processing of homicides depends on the extent to which defendants and victims conform to the popular conception of violent criminality.     

Erfolgsfaktoren effizienter Konfliktregelung durch Verhandlung im juristischen Kontext

This article deals with success factors for an efficient solving of legal conflicts using negotiations outside of trial courts. Negotiations, outside the court, provide the chance of finding a good win-win solution for all involved parties. A survey, which aims at finding the most common barriers to the resolution of conflicts outside trial courts, is presented in this article. The survey was conducted in a major international law firm. The lawyers were asked to list the most important reasons for negotiations failures. The results reveal a much higher importance of soft factors, especially communication and relationship issues over hard factors like e.g. business reasons. It is therefore concluded that communication and relationship are key success factors for dispute resolution in legal contexts. It is as well stressed that social science methodology and theories are useful tools for improving the understanding and effectiveness of legal negotiations. Two possible interventions for improving dispute resolution effectiveness in legal contexts are outlined.     

Inpatient psychiatric treatment of the difficult child: Common practices and their ethical implications

This article reviews and discusses the available research literature pertaining to the prevalence of seclusion and restraint procedures in inpatient psychiatric treatment facilities for children and adolescence. The rationales for use, potential effects, and factors found to influence the application of these more extreme clinical interventions are considered. The author suggests that the supposed therapeutic function of these types of practices has not been substantiated and their implementation can vary widely from one setting to another. Results from several studies suggest that clearly defined criteria for use and more observational studies of prevalence and precipitant factors could considerably refine these procedures and reduce potential abuses. The psychopharmacologic approach to the treatment of difficult children is examined as a sophisticated counteraggression strategy which has yet to demonstrate therapeutic efficacy. These clinical procedures, which are utilized in scores of inpatient settings, generate serious ethical questions for the health professional concerned with the legal rights of those minors labeled as deviant members of families or the society at large.     

Opening Up: Therapist Self-Disclosure in Theory, Research, and Practice

While most therapists report that they do disclose some information about themselves to their clients, therapist self-disclosure continues to be both controversial and nebulous in clinical theory, research, and practice. This article considers what makes therapist self-disclosure so challenging to define and study and provides an overview of the empirical and theoretical literature. It then concludes with a consideration of therapist self-disclosure in contemporary legal, ethical, and technological contexts of clinical work.     

Reflections Regarding Future Cannabis Use Among High‐Frequency Users in a Canadian University Student Population

Cannabis is the most widely used illicit drug worldwide, and the most commonly used illicit drug in Canada, among postsecondary student populations. This cross‐sectional study qualitatively assessed 112 high‐frequency, cannabis‐using university students in Canada: It examined their subjective expectations regarding what they anticipated their cannabis use would look like in the short‐ and mid‐term future and explored factors they saw potentially contributing to changes in their prospective drug use. Results indicated that participants believe that decisions about future cannabis use will be influenced by several contextual factors, including education and employment responsibilities, intimate relationships, and peer associations. These findings help illuminate the natural evolution of cannabis use and can guide the development of interventions for high‐frequency cannabis users in the future.